Canucks and Beyond

Entries with the tag: steve bernier

(Inbox) Kevin Bieksa— Last heard on November 13, Bieksa was due for two week layoff as he nursed a hairline fracture in his foot. The estimation was accurate as there’s a realistic chance he’s back in the lineup for Thursday against the Flames.

(Inbox) Alexandre Bolduc— came up from Manitoba yesterday. 8 goals and a plus-8 thus far, he’s supposedly practicing with the team this morning.

(Outbox) Ryan Johnson & Steve Bernier— Johnson’s injury is from (what else?) blocking a shot (or 50) a couple games ago, and Bolduc is on deck for him. Bernier’s damage is the result of running into the boards the other night instead of Brett Lebda. Bernier’s explanation:

According to Bernier, he was injured when he snagged his right foot on the Detroit net and was thrown off balance trying to thump Lebda, causing him to miss.

“I lost my footing and I went shoulder and feet first into the boards,” he said. “After that, I didn’t feel very well.”

Slapstick comedy at its finest. (Well, except for the emergency medical care required.)

Update 12:33pm PT: Johnson gets two fractures for the price of one. If you don’t want more bad news, don’t click.

In the Canucks case, that looks like it means the the end of the Steve Bernier-on-the-first line experiment.

It was flawed from the start as Bernier’s style never meshed with the Sedin twins. Now, the twins get something they desperately need — speed.

Admittedly it’s not been working very well lately, but was it really “flawed from the start”? One of the first things that was apparent about the Sedins partnership with Bernier was that he gave them a physical presence where they’d never had one before. And for a couple games it seemed like it might work.

Anyway, onwards and upwards to LA, where Daniel and Henrik Sedin will now be hitting the ice with Mason Raymond. More details on lineup changes at The Province.

Last April, Vancouver finished the 2007-08 season with a dreary 7-1 loss to the Calgary Flames. This year they opened their new season by returning the favor, handing the Flames a 6-0 beating.

The pre-game ceremony honoring Luc Bourdon was emotional (as expected) and a well done affair by the Canucks. And Tom Cochrane’s Big League was the perfect tribute. (You can watch the video the Canucks produced here; to see the whole ceremony at GM Place, go here and fast forward about 2 minutes).

It was a bit of an emotional-overload transitioning from that to watching a hockey game, but once we did, what a great game it was. Here are some meandering observations:

While $2.5 million should be no laughing matter, I couldn’t help being amused by the series of events involving Steve Bernier yesterday. Nor could Adam Proteau at The Hockey News apparently, who would’ve enjoyed watching it go even further:

The only way this soap opera could be more entertaining would be if the Lightning’s braintrust discovered a hidden clause in the NHL’s collective bargaining agreement that allowed them to somehow supersede Vancouver’s ability to match and bring Bernier to Tampa Bay – a move that, by my calculations, would give the Bolts approximately 89 forwards heading into training camp.

St. Louis Blues President John Davidson announced today that the club has signed Group II free agent forward Steve Bernier to an offer sheet worth $2.5 million for next season. The Canucks will have seven days to match the offer or receive St. Louis’ 2nd round draft choice in 2009.

“Steve is a good young player who would play a big part in our youth movement,” said Davidson. “Our coaches and scouting staff are extremely positive about him.”

No doubt Davidson is simply doing the best thing for his club, but it still smells like payback.

Bet on Mike Gillis to match the offer, but regardless, I’d say the #$*!@ is about to hit the fan, no matter what.

Update 3:56pm PT: Canucks have matched the offer. Not a surprise. [TSN]

Update 4:25pm PT:Mike sent me a link to this story from July 5th, right after Bernier was traded from the Sabres. Here’s the money quote (gotta love agents!)—

There were rumours Bernier would sign an offer sheet, but Lupien said that was never in the plans.

“I don’t work like that,” said Lupien, who also represents Roberto Luongo and could have gone the offer-sheet route after Luongo accepted his qualifying offer from the Canucks. “I’ve always asked teams to be honest with my client and I’m sure he (Gillis) is going to be honest with players after being a former player himself.”

Chuqui at Two For Elbowing—who certainly knows far more about Steve Bernier’s history than I do—wrote a great post yesterday wondering about the sequence of events leading up to his trade to Vancouver:

Even recently, Bernier was being touted as a key cog in the Buffalo future.

And now he’s off to Vancouver for a 2nd and a third draft pick?

Alarm bells are going off here. When a player starts becoming the pass-around pack, unless it’s Mike Sillinger, you have to wonder why; especially when teams say nice things about them and then trade them.

Vancouver Canucks General Manager Mike Gillis announced today that the club has acquired right wing, Steve Bernier from the Buffalo Sabres in exchange for a second round Draft pick in 2010 and third round pick (Los Angeles’ selection) in 2009.

“Steve Bernier is a highly regarded young player who’s enjoyed success early in his career,” said Gillis. “With his right-handed shot he will be a great addition to our top six forward group and an asset to our power play.”